How Italian driver Ronnie Quintarelli endeared himself to Japan's rabid racing fans
Ronnie Quintarelli sent shockwaves through the paddock when he announced that the 2024 season would be his last. The news arrived not long before the final round at Suzuka Circuit, immediately prior to which the long-time Nissan driver appeared in front of the fans at the NISMO Festival, Nissan's traditional end-of-year celebration held at Fuji Speedway.
'When I made the announcement, at first it was a sad feeling,' recalls Quintarelli. 'But I received a lot of energy from the fans at the NISMO Festival. Many people greeted me and asked for photos. I didn't expect this reaction, and that made me very happy.'
Quintarelli made his Super GT debut all the way back in 2005, and had been a permanent fixture of the Nissan camp since 2008, winning four championships in the top GT500 class over the years. That not only makes him Super GT's most-successful foreign driver, but at least by titles, its most successful driver full stop.
Other series greats like Satoshi Motoyama, Yuji Tachikawa and Juichi Wakisaka, whom Quintarelli idolized when he first moved to Japan as a fresh-faced Formula 3 driver back in 2003, only managed three.
Not only did Quintarelli achieve such success, he did so while ingratiating himself in Japanese culture in a way that few drivers from overseas had done previously, and none have done since.
Indeed, once he debuted in Super GT in 2005, Quintarelli would never race professionally outside of Japan again, save for one guest appearance in a DTM round in Germany at the wheel of a Nissan GT500 car. That was despite having an offer to race in Formula 1 with the Spyker team in mid-2007.
So what made Quintarelli such a unique presence who stood above his fellow international drivers in Super GT? Much of it has to do with the unique circumstances by which he came to Japan.
Quintarelli in action at the opening All-Japan Formula 3 round at Suzuka Circuit in Mie Prefecture in 2003. |
Toyota
In 2002, the Venetian was racing in senior karting, and a French magazine article about his exploits was spotted by ex-F1 driver Pierre-Henri Raphanel, who had driven for the Inging team in the All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship (the forerunner to Super GT).
That led to a chance to participate in a shootout arranged by Inging's All-Japan Formula 3 team at the end of the season, after which Quintarelli was handed a two-year contract to race in the series.
Whereas most international drivers live in Tokyo or Gotemba, Shizuoka Prefecture, where many of the top teams are based, Quintarelli moved to an apartment in Yamaguchi Prefecture, just a short walk from the Inging factory. He would live there for five years.
'I enjoyed my time in Yamaguchi a lot," recalls Quintarelli. "I went to the factory every day to talk to the mechanics and the staff. They were so nice to me, and I also made friends going to the gym and playing soccer, as Inging found me a team to join.'
The fact that Quintarelli was in an area with few foreign nationals hastened the process of learning Japanese. By his own admission, his lack of English ability at the time also meant that learning the local lingo was the quickest route to being able to communicate properly with his new colleagues and friends in Japan.
By 2005, Quintarelli had graduated from F3 to Formula Nippon, the top single-seater series in Japan, which is now known as Super Formula, as well as Super GT, the top series for sports cars. When Inging stepped up to Formula Nippon in 2006, Quintarelli rejoined the team and became its lead driver, delivering the team its first victory in Okayama in 2007.
Quintarelli drives for NISMO during the fifth round of the 2024 Super GT season at Fuji Speedway. |
Nissan
That was arguably the season that defined Quintarelli's career. Not only did he turn down the chance to race in F1 for Spyker because of the clashes with his existing Formula Nippon commitments, it also opened the door for him to join Nissan's Super GT stable in 2008, initially with customer team Hasemi Motorsport.
And the fact he could speak Japanese well enough to address the press without an interpreter after his victory at Okayama was also significant.
'Hasemi-san really appreciated the fact I could speak Japanese,' says Quintarelli, referring to Masahiro Hasemi, whose eponymous team he spent the first two seasons of his Nissan tenure at. 'That was so important to get his attention, as he heard that I spoke Japanese when I won in Formula Nippon.
Quintarelli on the podium of the opening All-Japan Formula 3 round at Suzuka Circuit in 2003. |
Toyota
"It was partly because of the results on-track, but an important factor was that Nissan felt I loved Japan and I was making a big effort to be accepted in this country.'
Not only did Quintarelli go on to win four GT500 championships for Nissan, he settled down in Japan, marrying his wife, Emi, in 2008, and earning recognition for volunteering with the Italians for Tohoku group in the wake of the devastating 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami.
All good things must come to an end, and by his own admission, 45-year-old Quintarelli's eventual retirement was accelerated by a sub-par 2024 season. But he signed off on a high note in the Suzuka finale, gaining five positions during his stint before he climbed out of the cockpit of his Nissan Z GT500 for the final time in his illustrious career.
'I felt younger, like I was 10 years (younger),' he reflects. 'I am very strict on myself — if things are going badly, I am the first one to give myself 'zero' out of 10. But this time was by far and away my best stint of the year. ... So I have nothing to regret.'
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